Evaporative cooling device for beverage containers

ABSTRACT

An evaporative cooling device for beverage containers that uses hydrated polymer crystals within a sleeve-like cover to lower the temperature of a liquid contained within a conventional beverage container for an extended period of time through evaporative cooling. Made from flexible material, the device will have a flexible body conform to the shape of a wide variety of beverage containers. The evaporative cooling device is held to the beverage container by the increase in volume of the hydrated polymer crystals.

BACKGROUND Prior Art The following is a tabulation of some prior art that presently appears relevant: U.S. Patents

Patent Number Kind Code Issue Date Patentee 4,640,102 B1 1987 Feb. 03 Tannenbaum 4,882,914 B1 1989 Nov. 28 Haines-Keeley 5,983,662 B1 1999 Nov. 16 Luetsch 7,121,111 B2 2006 Oct. 16 Wilson et al. 7,344,767 B2 2008 Mar. 18 Giori et al. 7,677,056 B2 2010 Mar. 16 Panganiban 8,033,132 B1 2011 Oct. 11 Purser

U.S. Patent Application Publications

Publication Nr. Kind Code Publ. Date Applicant 2012/0186294 A1 2012 Jul. 26 Casey

The demand for keeping beverages cold is not new. As consumers became more mobile and beverages were consumed on the go, the demand for keeping beverages at a refreshing temperature without inhibiting mobility grew. Subsequently, the market for beverage coolers also grew.

Early proposed solutions consisted of an insulating device designed to increase the time in which a cold beverages reaches ambient temperature. One problem with the early designs is that the beverage had to be cold prior to using previously proposed designs and the device would keep beverages cool for a relatively short period of time.

Subsequently, several different designs were proposed to reduce the beverage temperature while maintaining beverage container mobility. Tannenbaum discloses a complex device which can cool beverages below that of ambient temperature; however, the device is relatively expensive to manufacture, restricted to the beverage container it was constructed within, and is a single use device. Similarly, the device proposed by Purser is a complex and single use device.

The design proposed by Haines-Keeley et al. discloses an expandable beverage cooler. While addressing the problem of varying container sizes, the complex construction is expensive to build, is very limited in its expandability and still requires a beverage to be cold prior to using the device.

In the device proposed by Casey, not only must the beverage be cold prior to using the device, but the device described in the claims is for a single diameter beverage container and is not adjustable.

Several types of beverage coolers have been proposed, but all heretofore known suffer from one or more of the following disadvantages:

-   -   (a) The beverage must initially be cold     -   (b) The device merely insulates     -   (c) The device is effective for a short period of time     -   (d) The device is expensive to manufacture     -   (e) The device can accommodate a small range of containers sizes     -   (f) The device is a single use device     -   (g) The device is not environmentally friendly

SUMMARY

In accordance with one embodiment an evaporative cooling device for cooling beverage containers comprises a flexible body, a plurality of cooling chambers containing refrigerant, a passage for holding a beverage container, and a self-adjusting open end.

ADVANTAGES

Accordingly several advantages of one or more aspects are as follows: to provide a beverage container cooler that continuously cools a beverage for many hours and even days, that is highly portable, that accommodates a wide array of beverage container sizes, that requires no power source to provide cooling, that is easily manufactured, that is reusable, and that is easy to use. Other advantages of one or more aspects will be apparent from a consideration of the drawings and ensuing description.

DRAWINGS Figures

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment prior to hydration

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a first embodiment with a conventional beverage container inserted

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal cross-section view taken along line 3_3 in FIG. 1 of a first embodiment prior to hydration

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal cross-section view taken along line 4_4 in FIG. 1 of a first embodiment after hydration

FIG. 5 is a longitudinal cross-section view taken along line 5_5 in FIG. 2 of a first embodiment with a conventional beverage container inserted

FIG. 6 is a Top view

Drawings -- Refernce Numerals 10 evaporative cooler 12 body 14 self-adjusting opening 16 lower opening 18 inner wall 20 passage 22 refrigerant 24 annular compartment 26 chamber seam 28 annular cavity 30 length of elastic 32 pull tab 34 vertical hold

DETAILED DESCRIPTION First Embodiment

With reference to the accompanying drawings and specifically FIG. 1, one embodiment of evaporative cooler 10, is shown to include body 12 made from a flexible material so as to conform to the shape of different sized and shaped beverage containers. In one embodiment, body 12 is made from a material which is flexible and porous, such as cotton fabric. However, the body can be made from any material which is flexible and porous, such as wool, flax, hemp, ramie, silk, denim, nylon, rayon, polyester, or a blend of one or more of such materials.

The body is generally tube-like in appearance, with openings 14 and 16 at opposed ends. In cooperation with the inner walls of body 12, openings 14 and 16 create a passage 20 through which a beverage container B can be inserted, as shown in FIG. 2.

As shown in longitudinal cross sectional view FIG. 3, adjacent to opening 14, annular cavity 28 encases a length of elastic 30 to form an expandable annular ring at opening 14. Located along the perimeter of opening 16, a plurality of pull tabs 32 are attached to the outer surface of flexible body 12 and held vertically in position by vertical hold 34, also shown in FIG. 3. Relative proximity of pull tabs 32 can be seen in top view FIG. 6.

As shown in the longitudinal cross sectional view of FIG. 3, body 12 is divided by seams 26 to create a plurality of annular compartments 24, which contain refrigerant 22. In one embodiment, refrigerant 22 is a super absorbent polymer such as sodium polyacrylate in crystal form. However other polymers can be used, such as, but not limited to, polyacrylamide copolymer, ethylene maleic anhydride copolymer, cross-linked carboxymethylcellulose, polyvinyl alcohol copolymers, cross-linked polyethylene oxide, or starch grafted copolymer of polyacrylonitrile.

OPERATION

The evaporative cooler 10 achieves cooling through the process of evaporative cooling facilitated by refrigerant 22. Comprised of super absorbent polymer (SAP) crystals, refrigerant 22 is hydrated by soaking evaporative cooler 10 briefly in water. Water is absorbed by refrigerant, which becomes gel-like after hydration. Evaporative cooler 10 can be applied to a beverage container either prior to or after hydrating refrigerant 22. FIG. 2, FIG. 4, and FIG. 5 show evaporative cooler 10 after hydration of refrigerant 22.

To apply evaporative cooler 10, the top portion of conventional beverage container B is inserted into opening 16 and through passage 20 until the top portion of beverage container B protrudes through opening 14, as shown in the cross sectional view shown in FIG. 5. The pull tabs 32 located on the perimeter of outer walls of body 12 adjacent to opening 16 aid in applying this embodiment evenly to beverage container B. Pull tabs 32 are designed to pull the base of evaporative cooler 10 toward the base of beverage container B for more complete coverage of said container and subsequently, more thorough cooling of the liquid within beverage container B.

As beverage cooler 10 is applied to beverage container B, annular elastic material 30 encased in cavity 28 located at opening 14 expands to the perimeter of beverage container B. Due to length of elastic 30 being adjacent to annular compartments 24 a greater portion of the beverage container B is covered by annular compartments 24 exposing less of container B to higher ambient temperatures, resulting in a greater cooling effect being achieved.

As shown in FIG. 4, refrigerant 22 in annular compartment 24 expands within annular compartment 24 when hydrated, increasing surface area contact with beverage container B. Due to the absorption properties of refrigerant 22 when hydrated, refrigerant 22 expands within annular compartment 24 to constrict around inserted beverage container B, holding evaporative cooler 10 firmly to beverage container B. The size of passage 20 is controlled by hydration of refrigerant 22. By soaking evaporative cooler 10 in water refrigerant 22 becomes hydrated. As a result of hydration, the volume of refrigerant 22 increases, causing the circumference of passage 20 to decrease. A user increases or decreases the level of hydration of refrigerant 22 to accommodate various sizes of beverage container B. Pull tabs 32 aid in applying this embodiment to beverage container B after refrigerant 22 in annular compartment 24 has been hydrated and the circumference of passage 20 has been reduced. The purpose of vertical hold 34 is to inhibit the pull tabs 32 from protruding outward from body 12 while providing additional attachment strength to body 12.

ADVANTAGES

From the description above, a number of advantages of some embodiments of my evaporative cooling device for beverage containers become evident:

-   -   a. The highly flexible body conforms to both conventional and         nonconventional beverage containers.     -   b. The beverage cooler is lightweight, flexible, and can be         rolled up or folded up and stowed in a small pocket, making it         highly portable and useful anywhere cool water is desirable,         such as hiking, boating, camping, and cycling.     -   c. Horizontal seams in the body walls create a plurality of         annular compartments, ensuring complete coverage of the         refrigerant over the entire beverage container surface.     -   d. Multiple annular cooling compartments provide cooling along         the entire surface of the beverage container.     -   e. The multiple annular compartments expand when hydrated,         compressing the body against the beverage container, holding         both adjacent to one another.     -   f. Because the cooling compartments are made with a highly         flexible and breathable material, the polymer refrigerant can         expand freely when hydrated, filling the entire compartment,         providing a strong constriction on the beverage container.     -   g. The elastic opening at the top of the cooler conforms to a         wide range of beverage container shapes and sizes.     -   h. The annular length of elastic prevents the cooler from         sagging and decreases exposure of the top of a beverage         container     -   i. The pull tabs provide a means for applying the cooler onto a         beverage container easily and evenly.     -   j. The simplicity of this embodiment makes it inexpensive to         manufacture, thereby making it available to the general public         at low cost.

CONCLUSION, RAMIFICATIONS, AND SCOPE

Thus the reader will see that at least one embodiment provides an effective, versatile evaporative cooler 10 that will provide a cooling effect as long as refrigerant 22 is hydrated, which can last anywhere from several hours to several days. This is advantageous for activities such as hiking, camping, and biking when refrigeration isn't readily available. This embodiment provides a lightweight, portable device that provides continuous cooling, while being inexpensive to manufacture.

While my above description contains many specificities, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope, but rather as an exemplification of one embodiment thereof. Many other variations are possible. For example, the number of annular compartments 24 can be more or less or situated horizontally or vertically. The composition of refrigerant 22 can be other highly absorbent polymer based on the latest chemical technologies. Another variation would replace the elastic in the upper opening with a drawstring. Another variation would eliminate the elastic at the upper opening, relying solely on annular compartments 24 to hold this embodiment to a beverage container.

Accordingly, the scope should be determined not by the embodiment illustrated, but by the appended claims and their legal equivalents. 

I claim:
 1. An evaporative cooling device for cooling beverage containers, comprising; a. a tubular body of flexible, porous material, b. said body having an upper and lower opening at opposed ends, c. said body divided into a plurality of compartments, d. said compartments containing a refrigerant, e. means where said compartments and said refrigerant when hydrated, expand together to urge a beverage container f. said body having an elastic means for constricting said upper opening to perimeter of a beverage container inserted therein, g. a plurality of pull tabs attached to the outer perimeter and adjacent to said lower opening Whereby this embodiment of the aforementioned evaporative cooler will cool beverage containers of a wide variety of sizes as a result of said flexible body working with said refrigerant to urge said beverage container, holding it securely in place.
 2. An evaporative cooler for cooling beverage containers comprising a flexible tubular body with an upper and lower opening at opposed ends and said flexible body containing a super absorbing refrigerant. a. The evaporative cooler of claim 1 wherein said flexible tubular body is composed of a porous fabric. b. The evaporative cooler of claim 1 wherein said flexible body is divided by seams into a plurality of annular compartments. c. The evaporative cooler of claim 1 wherein said flexible body is divided by seams into a plurality of compartments wherein said compartments contain a refrigerant. i. The evaporative cooler of claim 1 wherein said compartments of said flexible body contains a refrigerant consisting of a multitude of super absorbing polymer crystals. ii. The evaporative cooler of claim 1 wherein said compartments of said flexible body urge a beverage container when said refrigerant is hydrated. d. The evaporative cooler of claim 1 wherein an annular length of elastic is encased within the wall of said flexible body adjacent to said upper opening. e. The evaporative cooler of claim 1 wherein a plurality of pull tabs are equidistantly attached along the outer perimeter of said body adjacent to said lower opening. Whereby this embodiment of the aforementioned evaporative cooler will cool beverage containers of a wide variety of sizes as a result of said flexible body working with said refrigerant to urge said beverage container, holding it securely in place. 